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S&W Revolvers: 1961 to 1980 3-Screw PINNED Barrel SWING-OUT Cylinder Hand Ejectors WITH Model Numbers


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Old 04-23-2020, 09:03 PM
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Default Mod 67-1 Presentation Revolver

Hi All,

I am a Collector in New Zealand and I am looking for info on a Cased Mod 67-1 Revolver, manufactured in 1978/79, that I own which is engraved with the following;

Leon Riley
S&W ARMORERS SCHOOL
22-6-1979

The way the date is engraved would lead me to believe that this wasn't done in the States, as it would have most probably been dated 6-22-1979, but I could be wrong???

I have tried Uncle Google, but can find no information on a Leon Riley that would connect to the S&W Armorers School.

Was he an Instructor at the School who retired, was he an outstanding Student who finished top of his class/course, what connection does Leon Riley have to the School and why was he presented with this revolver?

As I believe it was not engraved at S&W (again I could be wrong???) I don't believe there will be any records there about this, but am happy to pay the coin to get a Letter from the Foundation confirming where/when it was shipped, etc, but note that records at the Foundation stop in 1977, or did I misread that?

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers & thanks


Nigel


P.S. Grips were done in NZ by previous Owner and were not part of original presentation. (If anyone can point me in the right direction for original correct grips, I would be grateful for that also.)
Attached Images
File Type: jpg 03 RHS Presentation Engraving to Leon Riley.jpg (52.1 KB, 382 views)
File Type: jpg 01 RHS in Case.jpg (79.3 KB, 405 views)
File Type: jpg 05 LHS in Case.jpg (78.4 KB, 371 views)

Last edited by nlwracing; 04-27-2020 at 07:59 PM.
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Old 04-24-2020, 08:30 AM
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Near the top of the page is the heading Downloads. Click on the link and you will see Most Popular Files. Listed under that heading is Letter of Authenticity Request Form. Click on that file, print the request form and follow the instructions at the bottom. You will receive your letter of authenticity signed by Roy Jinks.

Bill Cross
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Old 04-24-2020, 08:33 AM
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Welcome! A Forum member here attended the school in question (presumably here in the USA) and built up a revolver from parts, so this one may have been a student's "final exam" project.
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Old 04-24-2020, 09:26 AM
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I attended the S&W Armorers School (for auto pistols) in Springfield, MA, back in the 1980s. If memory serves, we all had to assemble a pistol that would pass factory inspection and we were then given the option of buying it. No one offered any kind of engraving. BTW, the box looks authentic, but (maybe) for an N-frame, or perhaps a K-frame with an enclosed ejector rod, like the M-19.
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Old 04-24-2020, 09:43 AM
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I also attended the Armorers School in the early 80’s and the name engraved on your gun was not an instructor during that time frame. We met all the instructors our first day and my class was run by a new instruction - Don Dion. We did build pistols for a LE contract but were not offered a “buy” option or discount on a gun. All graduates do have a parts discount. I recall that Massachusetts had new gun laws that were sketchy at the time and were were told in our acceptance letter to not bring any personal guns with us to work on or have worked on at the factory. There was no class ranking as we all had to “pass” to receive our certificate. We were treated to a nice dinner the evening of our last day. My thought is the engraved name was done on a personal owned gun for his own collection.
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Old 04-27-2020, 08:03 PM
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Thanks Gentlemen,

I will complete a request for a Letter of Authenticity and see what comes of it.

Theories & personal experiences have been great, thank you, but I am really wanting/hoping to find out who Leon Riley is and why this revolver actually ended up engraved with his name, etc...

Cheers,

Nigel

Last edited by nlwracing; 06-02-2020 at 07:32 PM.
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Old 04-28-2020, 09:21 PM
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Your Model 67-1 looks to have been a revolver someone cared a great deal about. The presentation case is most certainly an added accessory and not part of the original package from the factory. These presentation cases were standard only on S&W's most expensive catalogued models (such as the Models 25, 27, 29, and 57) and a few other commemoratives (such as the Texas Ranger Model 19). These presentation cases were available from the factory as an accessory and that is likely how it came to be paired with your Model 67.

I wish I could provide some information about the engraving but I suspect it was done at a previous owner's request outside of the factory.
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Old 04-29-2020, 01:26 AM
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Man do I love those grips. Being a true patriot one of the main reasons I bought my Jeep was 1776 being last four digits on my vin.
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Old 05-20-2020, 05:59 PM
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My M645 was our PD Armorer's class gun at Armorer's school in Springfield in 1988. He was permitted to buy it. It's not engraved or cased and he sold it to me early in 1989. He was always pleased when I shot qualification with it and if time permitted he enjoyed running a few rounds through it.

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Old 05-20-2020, 09:05 PM
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I took a close look at that engraved name and date. I suspect this was done BY Leon Riley, who was a student at the Armoreres Schools and most likely exploring engraving. If you look closely at the "box" surrounding his name you will see that it's not up to the quality of a professional engraver, at best it would be considered a somewhat advanced amateur. If you look at the 2's in the date you will see that they are not identical. While it's not a bad job it's just not up to the standard of a professional engraver.
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Old 05-20-2020, 09:52 PM
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Nice pieces, nice story.

Here in the states it is common for military and law enforcement to write dates: day/month/year!

Smiles,
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Old 05-23-2020, 01:00 PM
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I think that Leon Riley wanted to make a momento out of his class gun. It's rather cool.
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Old 06-02-2020, 07:36 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by scooter123 View Post
I took a close look at that engraved name and date. I suspect this was done BY Leon Riley, who was a student at the Armoreres Schools and most likely exploring engraving. If you look closely at the "box" surrounding his name you will see that it's not up to the quality of a professional engraver, at best it would be considered a somewhat advanced amateur. If you look at the 2's in the date you will see that they are not identical. While it's not a bad job it's just not up to the standard of a professional engraver.

Thanks scooter123,

That was a suspicion I also had, as I agree that the engraving is definitely not up to a professional standard.

The plot thickens... Who the heck is Leon Riley????

Cheers.
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Old 06-02-2020, 07:38 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jjfitch View Post
Nice pieces, nice story.

Here in the states it is common for military and law enforcement to write dates: day/month/year!

Smiles,

Awesome news, thanks jjfitch.
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Old 01-14-2021, 10:41 PM
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Smile Success...

Well, after years of chasing info with no success, I had a local Militaria Club meeting at my house recently and an "older" member saw the revolver and when I pointed out the name Leon Riley, he simply said, "Oh Leon, he used to be the New Zealand S&W Importer many years ago" and he dropped a couple of names of people that I know, who would know who Leon was.

After contacting those people, they informed me that Leon has sadly passed away due to cancer, when he was quite young, and that he had indeed been to the S&W Armorers School and that he was personally know to Roy Jinks, so guess who I have finally sent an info request to.

Super stoked to finally be getting somewhere and thought you may be interested in an update.

Attached a small pic of my simple display of some of my bits and pieces for your viewing pleasure.

Cheers,


Nigel
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File Type: jpg Small display 1.jpg (119.1 KB, 85 views)

Last edited by nlwracing; 01-14-2021 at 10:42 PM.
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Old 10-19-2023, 07:06 PM
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Smile Letter of Authenticity from S&W

Thought I should update this thread with a copy of my letter from S&W.
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Old 10-23-2023, 06:47 PM
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Just a little bit more info from Mr Jinks about Leon's time at the S&W Armorers School, which may be of interest to some of you who also attended the School.


"I know the armory school set up as I arranged it for him and he had two of the best instructors that the school ever had Arch Dubia and John Contro they were both master gunsmiths and I worked with them at many shoots across the U.S. Thanks again Roy"
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Old 10-23-2023, 08:09 PM
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wow... so much for buy the gun, not the story... thanks for sharing.
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